“THE MURDER OF THE EARL OF SHAFTESBURY – ANTONY ASHLEY-COOPER”

 

 

The murder of Antony Ashley-Cooper, the 10th Earl of Shaftesbury, is a haunting tale of an aristocratic descent into the seedy underbelly of the French Riviera. It is a story where centuries of British heritage collided with modern greed, resulting in a crime that shocked two nations.

 

The Protagonist: A Peer in Peril

Antony Ashley-Cooper was the quintessential British aristocrat—educated at Eton and Oxford, custodian of a 9,000-acre estate in Dorset, and heir to a title dating back to 1672. However, following the death of his mother and a series of failed marriages, the "gentle soul" sought solace in the neon lights of the Côte d'Azur.

By the early 2000s, the Earl was living a life of high-stakes decadence in Cannes, spending thousands of euros a night on champagne and the company of escorts. It was here that he met Jamila M’Barek, a twice-divorced former model and escort. Despite the warnings of his inner circle, the Earl was smitten, and the two married in 2002.

 

The Motive: A Fortune at Stake:

The marriage was volatile from the start. By 2004, the Earl had grown weary of Jamila’s volatility and the financial drain of their lifestyle. He began divorce proceedings and, more importantly, found a new girlfriend—a young Dutch woman named Nadia Orche.

For Jamila, a divorce meant losing:

·        An annual allowance of roughly €150,000.

·        A luxury flat in Cannes.

·        Her status as a countess.

·        Most importantly, the inheritance of the Shaftesbury estate, which was worth an estimated £6 million at the time.

Faced with a return to a life of struggle, Jamila conspired with her brother, Mohammed M’Barek, a man with a history of violence and a desperate need for money.

 

The Murder: A Fatal Meeting:

On November 5, 2004, the Earl was lured to Jamila’s apartment in Cannes under the guise of a "farewell" meeting or a reconciliation attempt.

·        The Act: While in the apartment, Mohammed M’Barek confronted the Earl. A struggle ensued, and Mohammed strangled the 66-year-old Earl to death.

·        The Disposal: The siblings placed the body in the trunk of a car and drove into the foothills of the French Alps. They dumped the remains in a remote, overgrown ravine near Théoule-sur-Mer.

 

The Investigation and Findings:

For months, the Earl was simply a "missing person." Because of his nomadic, hard-partying lifestyle, many assumed he had simply gone on an unannounced trip. However, several key factors broke the case:

1. The Psychological Breakdown:

In February 2005, overwhelmed by guilt or the pressure of the investigation, Jamila was admitted to a psychiatric clinic. There, she made a partial confession to a nurse, which was promptly reported to the police.

2. Forensic Technology:

French investigators used cell site analysis to track the movements of Jamila and Mohammed’s mobile phones on the night of the disappearance. The signals pinged off towers in the remote Alpine foothills—an area where the siblings had no reason to be.

3. Discovery of the Body

On April 7, 2005, led by the GPS data and Jamila’s eventually coerced directions, police found the Earl’s remains. The body was so badly decomposed that it had to be identified through dental records and DNA.

 

The Verdict and Sentencing:

The trial in Nice (2007) was a media circus. Jamila claimed she only wanted her brother to "talk" to the Earl and that the death was an accident during a fight. Mohammed claimed he was framed or that he had acted in a moment of "blind rage."

Person	Charge	Original Sentence	Outcome
Jamila M’Barek	Complicity in premeditated murder	25 Years	Reduced to 20 years on appeal; released in 2016.
Mohammed M’Barek	Premeditated murder	25 Years	Sentence upheld.

 

The Aftermath:

The death of the 10th Earl left a void in the Shaftesbury legacy that was filled by tragedy and then resilience:

·        The 11th Earl: Antony’s eldest son, Anthony, inherited the title but died tragically of a heart attack just six months after his father’s body was found, at age 27.

·        The 12th Earl: The title passed to the younger son, Nicholas Ashley-Cooper, who left a career as a DJ in New York to return to Dorset. He has since successfully restored the family estate, St Giles House, which had fallen into ruin during his father’s "decadent" years.

"It was a Shakespearean tragedy played out in the nightclubs of the Riviera." — Legal commentator during the 2007 trial.

 

The restoration of St Giles House by Nicholas Ashley-Cooper, the 12th Earl of Shaftesbury, is widely considered one of the most successful and inspiring heritage rescues in modern British history. It represents the "redemption" arc following the dark tragedy of his father’s murder and the sudden death of his brother.

 

Inheritance through Tragedy:

In 2005, Nicholas Ashley-Cooper was a 25-year-old professional techno DJ living in New York City, far removed from the responsibilities of the British peerage. His life changed overnight due to two back-to-back tragedies:

1.   November 2004: His father, the 10th Earl, was murdered in France.

2.   May 2005: His older brother, Anthony (the 11th Earl), died of a sudden heart attack at age 27 while visiting Nicholas in New York.

Nicholas unexpectedly became the 12th Earl and the steward of a 5,500-acre estate and a crumbling ancestral seat that he had barely visited as an adult.

 

The State of St Giles House: A "Buildings at Risk" Manor

When Nicholas returned to Dorset, he found the family seat in a state of "critical" decay. The house had not been lived in by the family since 1961.

·        Physical Decay: Water was pouring through the roof, ceilings were collapsing, and walls were covered in black mold and dry rot.

·        The "At Risk" Register: The house was on the Historic England "Buildings at Risk" register, essentially a list of important buildings in danger of being lost forever.

·        Grounds: The seven-acre lake had filled with silt, and the famous Shell Grotto—an 18th-century garden folly lined with exotic shells and fossils—was falling apart.

 

The Restoration: From Nightclubs to Nobility:

Nicholas decided not to sell the "white elephant" but to restore it. He moved back to England, earned an MBA from London Business School, and embarked on a 12-year restoration project.

·        Phase 1 (The South Wing): In 2010, Nicholas and his wife, Dinah, self-financed the restoration of the south wing to make it a habitable family home. This allowed them to live on-site and oversee the work.

·        Phase 2 (The State Rooms): They meticulously restored the grand reception rooms, regilding the 18th-century plasterwork and cleaning the ancestral portraits that had spent decades under dust sheets.

·        Modern Touches: While preserving the "shabby chic" historical character, they added modern necessities like en-suite bathrooms (converted from old dressing rooms) and a lift.

·        The Nightclub: In a nod to his past life, Nicholas converted the basement's old beer cellar into a fully functioning nightclub for events and private parties.

 

Awards and Success:

The restoration was so successful that it became a blueprint for saving other heritage sites. It has won several prestigious awards:

·        2014: The Georgian Group Award for Restoration of a Georgian Country House.

·        2015: The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Award for Building Conservation.

·        2015: The Historic England Angel Award for "Best Rescue of a Heritage Site."

 

The Estate Today:

Today, St Giles House is once again a family home, inhabited by Nicholas, Dinah, and their three children. To ensure its financial sustainability, it operates as a high-end events and wedding venue, hosting up to 120 guests in its state rooms. Nicholas also wrote a book about the journey titled The Rebirth of an English Country House.

 

Summary of the Shaftesbury Lineage Transition:

 

Earl	Relationship	Fate/Status
10th Earl (Antony)	Father	Murdered in France (2004).
11th Earl (Anthony)	Brother	Died of a heart attack (2005) after 6 months in the title.
12th Earl (Nicholas)	Current	Restored the estate; lives there today.

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